Yeltz to continue promotion push

HALESOWEN Town will continue their promotion push when they travel to Market Drayton this Saturday.

Table-toppers Town will keep the pressure on their Northern Premier League Division One South title rivals if they can pick up their fifth win in six games.

They gained another valuable three points last Saturday by beating Newcastle Town 3-2 at The Grove.

The Yeltz had to endure an edgy ending after earlier establishing a comfortable three goal lead.

In a flat opening period, Iyseden Christie's ninth minute header was turned over the bar by Newcastle goalkeeper Adam Alcock and Ben Haseley fired high three minutes later.

For the visitors, Tim Sanders curled over the bar from the edge of the penalty area after 19 minutes. The game had a subdued feel until The Grove came to life as the Yeltz hit two goals within the last five minutes of the first half.

Firstly, Haseley beat Alcock from close range to put Halesowen 1-0 ahead in the 40th minute from Nigel Penney's throw-in. Christie then stepped up to slam a 45th minute penalty into the bottom corner of the net to double the home side's advantage at the break.

In the second period, a Halesowen victory looked assured when Yeltz captain Joe Hull towered high to power home a far post header from Neil MacKenzie's precise 50th minute cross.

But Newcastle's Sanders had other ideas and made it an unlikely nervy ending for Halesowen by pulling back two goals.

As the season draws to a close, chairman Colin Brookes thinks Town should only concentrate on their own results.

He said: "The other teams have games in hand but we can only worry about ourselves. If we win all of our remaining matches then we will either win the league or end up in the play-offs. It is an exciting time.

"All we can do is our own job. If that then creates some pressure on those behind us, then all the better."

Halesowen's ranks have been boosted this week by the arrival of former player Mark Danks.

The experienced forward has joined from Sutton Coldfield Town to assist the club's promotion push.

In his previous time with Halesowen he totalled 20 goals in 74 appearances.

He joins last week's arrival Mitch Botfield, who made his return when coming on as a substitute in the last 15 minutes of the Newcastle game.